You’re not supposed to fight every battle. You won’t reach your destiny dealing with all the weeds. When the enemy comes in at night and sows weeds in your good soil, don’t panic, don’t get upset. Let God deal with the weeds.
When you learn the principle to not rely on people, but to rely on God for your approval, value, and encouragement, you won’t live stressed out because somebody is not giving you what you expect.
Quit discounting yourself. Quit thinking you can’t pray for something big, you don’t have the faith, you don’t come from the right family. The requirement is: Are you a human? Since you are, God says you can ask for things that seem impossible.
Are there some situations today that you need to leave alone? You’re striving, trying to force it, living stressed, but nothing’s changing. Why don’t you come back to a place of peace. God hasn’t brought you this far to leave you.
The enemy doesn’t want you to see your good works as fulfilling the will of God and also working in you, changing you, and leading you to fulfill your destiny. We need to see these “good works” for what they are—they are pleasing and honorable in God’s sight, they bring Him joy.
You’re not blessed when you win every argument and have the last word. You are blessed when you are willing to let go of an offense. You are blessed when you stay quiet in order to stay out of strife. You are blessed when you don’t have to have your way. You are blessed when you are willing to keep the peace.
The enemy would love to get us distracted fighting battles that don’t matter. You don’t have time to waste responding to people who are never going to be for you. Don’t spend your valuable time dealing with a weed. Ignore the weeds.
When you ask boldly, when you ask in faith, declaring God’s greatness, that’s when He’ll bless you indeed. He’ll make things happen that you could never make happen. Could it be that you’re not seeing God’s greatness because you’re praying weak prayers?
There are things that don’t make sense, that aren't fair. The good news is that’s not how your story ends. The enemy doesn’t have the final say. He may sow some weeds, but that does not stop your harvest.
Just because God gives you a dream, gives you a promise, doesn’t mean you can sit back and be passive. You have to go and possess it. You have to take steps of faith. That’s when you’re going to see God step in and do things that you couldn’t do.
It’s so easy to get baited into conflicts because we differ in our views and personalities. Too often, we want to have our own way and win an argument. It’s exactly the opposite attitude that Jesus describes in the Sermon on the Mount: “Blessed are the makers and maintainers of peace, for they shall be sons of God” (Matthew 5:9).
When you gave your heart to Jesus, you received the spiritual DNA of Almighty God and became His new creation. That means you are predisposed, or newly created in Jesus, for good works. God is drawing you to do the good works He has already prepared for you to do.
The Scripture talks about the faith of God. Sometimes, it’s not your faith; God puts the faith in you. He lights a fire in your spirit for something you couldn’t normally believe for. That’s setting you up for an awe-inspiring deed. That's setting you up to shine.
The Scripture says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105). It will shine on you, show you the right direction to walk, and drive away discouragement.
God will put you in situations where you’re up against a giant. It looks impossible. It’s easy to let fear, intimidation, and doubt talk us out of it. But you were created to perform awe-inspiring deeds. That giant is a setup. It’s a mighty exploit waiting to happen.
When you overlook an offense, do you realize the effects it may have? What happens when you extend forgiveness to a loved one rather than hold a grudge? Might it have an extended effect for a week, or a year, or perhaps even a lifetime?
There are two voices vying for your attention: the voice of doubt and the voice of faith. You get to choose which voice becomes a reality. The voice you dwell on, the thoughts you believe, that’s going to determine who you are.
Isaiah said, “Arise and shine for the glory of the Lord is upon you.” The glory of God is on you right now. But if you’re going to see it, you have to arise. You won’t shine like you should if you play it safe all the time.
The apostle Paul says, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10). That tells me that God has already prepared a way for us to walk in His will.
Difficult people are all around. There will be someone who can steal your joy, offend you, leave you out, say something that’s not true. The key is to handle it the right way. Don’t take the bait.